103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
HB4045

 

Introduced 4/25/2023, by Rep. Barbara Hernandez - Edgar Gonzalez, Jr. - John M. Cabello - Travis Weaver - Angelica Guerrero-Cuellar, et al.

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
65 ILCS 5/10-1-7  from Ch. 24, par. 10-1-7
65 ILCS 5/10-2.1-6  from Ch. 24, par. 10-2.1-6
70 ILCS 705/16.06d new

    Amends the Illinois Municipal Code and the Fire Protection District Act. Provides that an individual who is not a citizen but is legally authorized to work in the United States under federal law is authorized to apply for the position of firefighter, subject to all requirements and limitations, other than citizenship, to which other applicants are subject. Effective January 1, 2024.


LRB103 31933 AWJ 60656 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB4045LRB103 31933 AWJ 60656 b

1    AN ACT concerning local government.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Illinois Municipal Code is amended by
5changing Sections 10-1-7 and 10-2.1-6 as follows:
 
6    (65 ILCS 5/10-1-7)  (from Ch. 24, par. 10-1-7)
7    Sec. 10-1-7. Examination of applicants; disqualifications.
8    (a) All applicants for offices or places in the classified
9service, except those mentioned in Section 10-1-17, are
10subject to examination. The examination shall be public,
11competitive, and open to all citizens of the United States,
12with specified limitations as to residence, age, health,
13habits, and moral character. An individual who is not a
14citizen but is legally authorized to work in the United States
15under federal law is authorized to apply for the position of
16firefighter, subject to all requirements and limitations,
17other than citizenship, to which other applicants are subject.
18    (b) Residency requirements in effect at the time an
19individual enters the fire or police service of a municipality
20(other than a municipality that has more than 1,000,000
21inhabitants) cannot be made more restrictive for that
22individual during his or her period of service for that
23municipality, or be made a condition of promotion, except for

 

 

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1the rank or position of Fire or Police Chief.
2    (c) No person with a record of misdemeanor convictions
3except those under Sections 11-1.50, 11-6, 11-7, 11-9, 11-14,
411-15, 11-17, 11-18, 11-19, 11-30, 11-35, 12-2, 12-6, 12-15,
514-4, 16-1, 21.1-3, 24-3.1, 24-5, 25-1, 28-3, 31-1, 31-4,
631-6, 31-7, 32-1, 32-2, 32-3, 32-4, and 32-8, subdivisions
7(a)(1) and (a)(2)(C) of Section 11-14.3, and paragraphs (1),
8(6), and (8) of subsection (a) of Section 24-1 of the Criminal
9Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012 or arrested for any
10cause but not convicted on that cause shall be disqualified
11from taking the examination on grounds of habits or moral
12character, unless the person is attempting to qualify for a
13position on the police department, in which case the
14conviction or arrest may be considered as a factor in
15determining the person's habits or moral character.
16    (d) Persons entitled to military preference under Section
1710-1-16 shall not be subject to limitations specifying age
18unless they are applicants for a position as a fireman or a
19policeman having no previous employment status as a fireman or
20policeman in the regularly constituted fire or police
21department of the municipality, in which case they must not
22have attained their 35th birthday, except any person who has
23served as an auxiliary police officer under Section 3.1-30-20
24for at least 5 years and is under 40 years of age.
25    (e) All employees of a municipality of less than 500,000
26population (except those who would be excluded from the

 

 

HB4045- 3 -LRB103 31933 AWJ 60656 b

1classified service as provided in this Division 1) who are
2holding that employment as of the date a municipality adopts
3this Division 1, or as of July 17, 1959, whichever date is the
4later, and who have held that employment for at least 2 years
5immediately before that later date, and all firemen and
6policemen regardless of length of service who were either
7appointed to their respective positions by the board of fire
8and police commissioners under the provisions of Division 2 of
9this Article or who are serving in a position (except as a
10temporary employee) in the fire or police department in the
11municipality on the date a municipality adopts this Division
121, or as of July 17, 1959, whichever date is the later, shall
13become members of the classified civil service of the
14municipality without examination.
15    (f) The examinations shall be practical in their
16character, and shall relate to those matters that will fairly
17test the relative capacity of the persons examined to
18discharge the duties of the positions to which they seek to be
19appointed. The examinations shall include tests of physical
20qualifications, health, and (when appropriate) manual skill.
21If an applicant is unable to pass the physical examination
22solely as the result of an injury received by the applicant as
23the result of the performance of an act of duty while working
24as a temporary employee in the position for which he or she is
25being examined, however, the physical examination shall be
26waived and the applicant shall be considered to have passed

 

 

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1the examination. No questions in any examination shall relate
2to political or religious opinions or affiliations. Results of
3examinations and the eligible registers prepared from the
4results shall be published by the commission within 60 days
5after any examinations are held.
6    (g) The commission shall control all examinations, and
7may, whenever an examination is to take place, designate a
8suitable number of persons, either in or not in the official
9service of the municipality, to be examiners. The examiners
10shall conduct the examinations as directed by the commission
11and shall make a return or report of the examinations to the
12commission. If the appointed examiners are in the official
13service of the municipality, the examiners shall not receive
14extra compensation for conducting the examinations unless the
15examiners are subject to a collective bargaining agreement
16with the municipality. The commission may at any time
17substitute any other person, whether or not in the service of
18the municipality, in the place of any one selected as an
19examiner. The commission members may themselves at any time
20act as examiners without appointing examiners. The examiners
21at any examination shall not all be members of the same
22political party.
23    (h) In municipalities of 500,000 or more population, no
24person who has attained his or her 35th birthday shall be
25eligible to take an examination for a position as a fireman or
26a policeman unless the person has had previous employment

 

 

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1status as a policeman or fireman in the regularly constituted
2police or fire department of the municipality, except as
3provided in this Section.
4    (i) In municipalities of more than 5,000 but not more than
5200,000 inhabitants, no person who has attained his or her
635th birthday shall be eligible to take an examination for a
7position as a fireman or a policeman unless the person has had
8previous employment status as a policeman or fireman in the
9regularly constituted police or fire department of the
10municipality, except as provided in this Section.
11    (j) In all municipalities, applicants who are 20 years of
12age and who have successfully completed 2 years of law
13enforcement studies at an accredited college or university may
14be considered for appointment to active duty with the police
15department. An applicant described in this subsection (j) who
16is appointed to active duty shall not have power of arrest, nor
17shall the applicant be permitted to carry firearms, until he
18or she reaches 21 years of age.
19    (k) In municipalities of more than 500,000 population,
20applications for examination for and appointment to positions
21as firefighters or police shall be made available at various
22branches of the public library of the municipality.
23    (l) No municipality having a population less than
241,000,000 shall require that any fireman appointed to the
25lowest rank serve a probationary employment period of longer
26than one year. The limitation on periods of probationary

 

 

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1employment provided in Public Act 86-990 is an exclusive power
2and function of the State. Pursuant to subsection (h) of
3Section 6 of Article VII of the Illinois Constitution, a home
4rule municipality having a population less than 1,000,000 must
5comply with this limitation on periods of probationary
6employment, which is a denial and limitation of home rule
7powers. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this
8Section, the probationary employment period limitation may be
9extended for a firefighter who is required, as a condition of
10employment, to be a licensed paramedic, during which time the
11sole reason that a firefighter may be discharged without a
12hearing is for failing to meet the requirements for paramedic
13licensure.
14    (m) To the extent that this Section or any other Section in
15this Division conflicts with Section 10-1-7.1 or 10-1-7.2,
16then Section 10-1-7.1 or 10-1-7.2 shall control.
17(Source: P.A. 102-813, eff. 5-13-22.)
 
18    (65 ILCS 5/10-2.1-6)  (from Ch. 24, par. 10-2.1-6)
19    Sec. 10-2.1-6. Examination of applicants;
20disqualifications.
21    (a) All applicants for a position in either the fire or
22police department of the municipality shall be under 35 years
23of age, shall be subject to an examination that shall be
24public, competitive, and open to all applicants (unless the
25council or board of trustees by ordinance limit applicants to

 

 

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1electors of the municipality, county, state, or nation) and
2shall be subject to reasonable limitations as to residence,
3health, habits, and moral character. An individual who is not
4a citizen but is legally authorized to work in the United
5States under federal law is authorized to apply for the
6position of firefighter, subject to all requirements and
7limitations, other than citizenship, to which other applicants
8are subject. The municipality may not charge or collect any
9fee from an applicant who has met all prequalification
10standards established by the municipality for any such
11position. With respect to a police department, a veteran shall
12be allowed to exceed the maximum age provision of this Section
13by the number of years served on active military duty, but by
14no more than 10 years of active military duty.
15    (b) Residency requirements in effect at the time an
16individual enters the fire or police service of a municipality
17(other than a municipality that has more than 1,000,000
18inhabitants) cannot be made more restrictive for that
19individual during his period of service for that municipality,
20or be made a condition of promotion, except for the rank or
21position of Fire or Police Chief.
22    (c) No person with a record of misdemeanor convictions
23except those under Sections 11-1.50, 11-6, 11-7, 11-9, 11-14,
2411-15, 11-17, 11-18, 11-19, 11-30, 11-35, 12-2, 12-6, 12-15,
2514-4, 16-1, 21.1-3, 24-3.1, 24-5, 25-1, 28-3, 31-1, 31-4,
2631-6, 31-7, 32-1, 32-2, 32-3, 32-4, and 32-8, subdivisions

 

 

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1(a)(1) and (a)(2)(C) of Section 11-14.3, and paragraphs (1),
2(6), and (8) of subsection (a) of Section 24-1 of the Criminal
3Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012, or arrested for any
4cause but not convicted on that cause shall be disqualified
5from taking the examination to qualify for a position in the
6fire department on grounds of habits or moral character.
7    (d) The age limitation in subsection (a) does not apply
8(i) to any person previously employed as a policeman or
9fireman in a regularly constituted police or fire department
10of (I) any municipality, regardless of whether the
11municipality is located in Illinois or in another state, or
12(II) a fire protection district whose obligations were assumed
13by a municipality under Section 21 of the Fire Protection
14District Act, (ii) to any person who has served a municipality
15as a regularly enrolled volunteer fireman for 5 years
16immediately preceding the time that municipality begins to use
17full time firemen to provide all or part of its fire protection
18service, or (iii) to any person who has served as an auxiliary
19police officer under Section 3.1-30-20 for at least 5 years
20and is under 40 years of age, (iv) to any person who has served
21as a deputy under Section 3-6008 of the Counties Code and
22otherwise meets necessary training requirements, or (v) to any
23person who has served as a sworn officer as a member of the
24Illinois State Police.
25    (e) Applicants who are 20 years of age and who have
26successfully completed 2 years of law enforcement studies at

 

 

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1an accredited college or university may be considered for
2appointment to active duty with the police department. An
3applicant described in this subsection (e) who is appointed to
4active duty shall not have power of arrest, nor shall the
5applicant be permitted to carry firearms, until he or she
6reaches 21 years of age.
7    (f) Applicants who are 18 years of age and who have
8successfully completed 2 years of study in fire techniques,
9amounting to a total of 4 high school credits, within the cadet
10program of a municipality may be considered for appointment to
11active duty with the fire department of any municipality.
12    (g) The council or board of trustees may by ordinance
13provide that persons residing outside the municipality are
14eligible to take the examination.
15    (h) The examinations shall be practical in character and
16relate to those matters that will fairly test the capacity of
17the persons examined to discharge the duties of the positions
18to which they seek appointment. No person shall be appointed
19to the police or fire department if he or she does not possess
20a high school diploma or an equivalent high school education.
21A board of fire and police commissioners may, by its rules,
22require police applicants to have obtained an associate's
23degree or a bachelor's degree as a prerequisite for
24employment. The examinations shall include tests of physical
25qualifications and health. A board of fire and police
26commissioners may, by its rules, waive portions of the

 

 

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1required examination for police applicants who have previously
2been full-time sworn officers of a regular police department
3in any municipal, county, university, or State law enforcement
4agency, provided they are certified by the Illinois Law
5Enforcement Training Standards Board and have been with their
6respective law enforcement agency within the State for at
7least 2 years. No person shall be appointed to the police or
8fire department if he or she has suffered the amputation of any
9limb unless the applicant's duties will be only clerical or as
10a radio operator. No applicant shall be examined concerning
11his or her political or religious opinions or affiliations.
12The examinations shall be conducted by the board of fire and
13police commissioners of the municipality as provided in this
14Division 2.1.
15    The requirement that a police applicant possess an
16associate's degree under this subsection may be waived if one
17or more of the following applies: (1) the applicant has served
18for 24 months of honorable active duty in the United States
19Armed Forces and has not been discharged dishonorably or under
20circumstances other than honorable; (2) the applicant has
21served for 180 days of active duty in the United States Armed
22Forces in combat duty recognized by the Department of Defense
23and has not been discharged dishonorably or under
24circumstances other than honorable; or (3) the applicant has
25successfully received credit for a minimum of 60 credit hours
26toward a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or

 

 

HB4045- 11 -LRB103 31933 AWJ 60656 b

1university.
2    The requirement that a police applicant possess a
3bachelor's degree under this subsection may be waived if one
4or more of the following applies: (1) the applicant has served
5for 36 months of honorable active duty in the United States
6Armed Forces and has not been discharged dishonorably or under
7circumstances other than honorable or (2) the applicant has
8served for 180 days of active duty in the United States Armed
9Forces in combat duty recognized by the Department of Defense
10and has not been discharged dishonorably or under
11circumstances other than honorable.
12    (i) No person who is classified by his local selective
13service draft board as a conscientious objector, or who has
14ever been so classified, may be appointed to the police
15department.
16    (j) No person shall be appointed to the police or fire
17department unless he or she is a person of good character and
18not an habitual drunkard, gambler, or a person who has been
19convicted of a felony or a crime involving moral turpitude. No
20person, however, shall be disqualified from appointment to the
21fire department because of his or her record of misdemeanor
22convictions except those under Sections 11-1.50, 11-6, 11-7,
2311-9, 11-14, 11-15, 11-17, 11-18, 11-19, 11-30, 11-35, 12-2,
2412-6, 12-15, 14-4, 16-1, 21.1-3, 24-3.1, 24-5, 25-1, 28-3,
2531-1, 31-4, 31-6, 31-7, 32-1, 32-2, 32-3, 32-4, and 32-8,
26subdivisions (a)(1) and (a)(2)(C) of Section 11-14.3, and

 

 

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1paragraphs (1), (6), and (8) of subsection (a) of Section 24-1
2of the Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012, or
3arrest for any cause without conviction on that cause. Any
4such person who is in the department may be removed on charges
5brought and after a trial as provided in this Division 2.1.
6(Source: P.A. 102-538, eff. 8-20-21; 102-813, eff. 5-13-22.)
 
7    Section 10. The Fire Protection District Act is amended by
8adding Section 16.06d as follows:
 
9    (70 ILCS 705/16.06d new)
10    Sec. 16.06d. Noncitizen applicants. An individual who is
11not a citizen but is legally authorized to work in the United
12States under federal law is authorized to apply for the
13position of firefighter, subject to all requirements and
14limitations, other than citizenship, to which other applicants
15are subject.
 
16    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect January
171, 2024.